2 Ahmedabad agents booked after couple, trying to illegally migrate to US, held hostage for ransom in Iran

The two agents have been booked under IPC sections 364A (abduction), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating), and 120B (criminal conspiracy).

Gujarat illegal migration, US illegal migration, cheating case, Iran hostage for ransom, Ahmedabad agents arrest, abduction charges against agents, criminal breach of trust, criminal conspiracy, indian express, indian express news

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Two Ahmedabad-based agents have been booked following a police complaint that a young couple from the city who were reportedly illegally immigrating to the US has been allegedly held hostage for ransom in Iran.

Krishnanagar police inspector AJ Chouhan confirmed that the accused — Ahmedabad-based agents Abhaybhai Jitendrabhai Raval and Pintubhai Goswami — are currently absconding.

According to complainant Sanket Patel, his brother Pankajbhai Patel and his wife Nishaben Bhatt, both 29 years old and residents of Naroda in Ahmedabad, were looking to “illegally” immigrate to the US by paying Rs 1.15 crore to the agents. To arrange the money, Pankaj, who used to work at a telecom company in Gota, mortgaged the family home and borrowed from family members.

Raval and Goswami were coordinating the couple’s transit from Ahmedabad. Following Raval’s instructions, the couple left for Hyderabad on the evening of June 3.

An agent named Shakeel received the couple in Hyderabad. Shakeel, who apparently arranged the couple’s transit from Hyderabad to Iran, also took them to the Iran Consulate in the city for visa requirements on June 7. After this, the couple left for Iran on June 12 on a night flight with a five-hour layover in Dubai.

The couple was accompanied by Muniruddin Siddiqui, another agent, on their Hyderabad-Iran flight. On the morning of June 12, Pankaj had messaged his brother that they had reached Dubai.
A day later, Sanket received a call from the Ahmedabad agent informing that the couple had reached Mexico. He also asked him to arrange for the payment of the amount.

Soon, Sanket received a video message from an unknown international number. The video showed Pankaj, in torn clothes, requesting Sanket to quickly arrange the money and pay the agent, failing which the agents were threatening to send nude videos of the couple, the complaint said.
The FIR adds that Nishaben is four months pregnant. The complaint stated that a person named Wasim was demanding the ransom.

On June 16, Raval and Goswami claimed before Sanket that they paid Rs 6 lakh to the alleged abductors. With no news of the couple, on June 18, Sanket was informed by Raval that the couple had been released in Tehran city with their passports and some money but without a mobile phone.
Thereafter, both Raval and Goswami switched off their phones compelling the complainant to approach the police.